An oceanic climate (also called marine west coast climate and maritime climate) is the climate typically found along the west coasts at the middle latitudes of all the world's continents, and in southeastern Australia; similar climates are also found at high elevations within the tropics. Map of the climate of the Earth The climate (ancient Greek: κλίμα) is the weather averaged over a long period of time. ... Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is the sixth-largest country in the world, the only country to occupy an entire continent, and the largest in the region of Australasia/Oceania. ...

Oceanic climates are characterized by a narrower annual range of temperatures than are encountered in other places at a comparable latitude, and differ from Mediterranean climates in that significant amounts of precipitation are received in summer. This means that precipitation is both adequate and reliable at all times of the year in oceanic climates, except in certain tropical highland areas, which would have tropical savanna climates (with a dry season in winter) if not for the high altitude making them cooler. Temperature is the physical property of a system which underlies the common notions of hot and cold; the material with the higher temperature is said to be hotter. ... A Mediterranean climate is one that resembles those of the lands bordering the Mediterranean Sea. ... In meteorology, precipitation is any kind of water that falls from the sky as part of the weather. ... Savanna is a grassland dotted with trees, and occurs in several types of biomes. ...

Overall temperature characteristics vary among oceanic climates; those at the lowest latitudes are subtropical from a thermal standpoint, but more commonly a mesothermal regime prevails, with cool, but not cold, winters. Poleward of the latter is a zone of subpolar oceanic climate, with a summer growing season of less than four months; examples of this climate include much of coastal Iceland in the Northern Hemisphere and extreme southern Chile in the Southern Hemisphere (the fact that this form of climate exists in both hemispheres ruling out the use of such terms as subarctic or boreal to denote it; even though these terms are used to refer to climates characterized by short summers, they are also synonyms for "northern" and therefore inappropriate). Temperature is the physical property of a system which underlies the common notions of hot and cold; the material with the higher temperature is said to be hotter. ... Subtropical climate is the form of climate found immediately poleward of the zone of tropical climate. ... Iceland - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins/monobook/IE50Fixes. ... The Northern Hemisphere is the half of a planets surface (or celestial sphere) that is north of the equator. ... The Republic of Chile is a country in South America occupying a long coastal strip between the Andes mountains and the Pacific Ocean. ... The Southern Hemisphere is the part of Earths surface that is south of the equator. ... Regions having a subarctic climate (also called boreal climate) are characterized by very cold winters, and brief, warm summers. ... Boreal means northern from the eponymous Boreas, god of the North Wind in Greek mythology. ...

With one significant exception, oceanic climates are classified as humid with respect to precipitation, the only major example of a dry oceanic climate being that of Patagonia. Humidity is the quantity of moisture in the air. ... In meteorology, precipitation is rain, snow and other material falling from the sky. ... For the town, see Patagonia, Arizona. ...

Compare continental climate, Mediterranean climate. A continental climate is the climate typical of the interiors of the large continents of the Northern Hemisphere; similar climates exist along the east coasts (but not the west coasts) of the same continents, and also at higher elevations in certain other parts of the world. ... A Mediterranean climate is one that resembles those of the lands bordering the Mediterranean Sea. ...

External link

• EPIC Data Collection (http://www.epic.noaa.gov/epic/ewb/) On-line ocean observational data collection